Bush administration restates its opposition to natural gas tax credit
The Bush administration has restated its opposition to tax credits for North Slope natural gas but said it would accept other financial measures to encourage a proposed pipeline to the Lower 48. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham, in a letter Wednesday to Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., also said the administration believes the pipeline's route should be selected by market forces rather than legislation.

Cost of business licenses quadruple
One cost of doing business in Alaska quadrupled this month as the price of a two-year business license rose from $50 to $200. The jump marks the first time the cost of the license has changed since 1949, said Rick Urion, state director of occupational licensing. "We've had a surprising few complaints," Urion said.

American voters must stop Republican agenda
It has become disparagingly obvious to me, and I would hope, also, to the multitude of corned victims still reeling from blackouts, lost pensions, election subterfuge, war mongering, welfare for the wealthy, environmental destruction, executive branch deceit and cronyism, that this Republican agenda intends to take humanity back to a state of feudalism!

Photo: New truck to fight fires
Capt. Jerry Godkin of Capital City Fire and Rescue explains Wednesday how a new state-of-the-art truck at Juneau Airport works. The new truck, built by Oshkosh, cost $682,000 and is designed to fight airplane fires. Federal funds helped purchase the truck.

Six candidates vie for Taylor's Senate seat1
Senate hopefuls are lining up to fill the seat to be vacated next week by veteran Southeast Alaska lawmaker Robin Taylor. Taylor, a Wrangell Republican, announced in August his plans to leave the Legislature for a new job as a special assistant to Department of Transportation Southeast Region Director Gary Paxton.

Juneau honors Sept. 11 victims
Under an early morning mist Thursday, more than 60 people gathered around a year-old monument at Riverside Rotary Park to mark the second anniversary of a national tragedy. People who were starting their day on Sept. 11, 2001, didn't know the horror it would bring, Capital City Fire and Rescue Chaplain Sam Dalin told the crowd. The ceremonies were organized by volunteer firefighters. The audience was dominated by people in police and firefighting uniforms.

Juneau teen waiting for bone marrow transplant in Seattle
Most local ninth-graders are busy navigating the halls and figuring out the tricks of life at Juneau-Douglas High School. But Andrew Gibb, who would have been a freshman at the school this fall, is overcoming his own kind of challenge. Gibb, 14, has been in the intensive care unit at Children's Hospital in Seattle since late June, when his Juneau doctor found his white blood cell count to be dangerously low, said his mother, Cheryle Rice.

Critics abandon bridge lawsuit
Juneau's cycling organization has decided it won't go to court to try to keep the state from removing bike lanes from the Douglas Bridge. The Juneau Freewheelers Bicycle Club threatened earlier this week to appeal city approval of the state's plan to reconfigure the bridge's lanes and approaches. The Juneau Assembly passed a resolution Monday supporting the plan, which the Freewheelers said they would oppose in Juneau Superior Court.

Cantillons celebrate 60th
Steve and Kerry would like to wish George and Betty Cantillon a happy 60th wedding anniversary. They were married Sept. 10, 1943.

Hues and Brown marry
Elyce Renee Hues of Mt. Angel, Ore., and Jarhid Allen Brown of Juneau were married in a ceremony officiated by Steve Brown, the groom's uncle, on June 21 at Auke Village Recreation Area. A wedding dinner followed at Di Sopa Restaurant. The reception was held on July 5 at Silver Falls, Ore.

Southeast Sagas: A Tale of Two Tunnels
Much of Juneau's history is hiding in the underbrush - literally. That is, history often takes the form of feats of engineering. And, when these feats are no longer in use, grass, shrubs and, ultimately, trees reclaim the ground. This is a tale of two tunnels which were important in their heyday but are no longer active: The Gold Creek Tunnel behind downtown Juneau and the Nugget Creek Tunnel near Mendenhall Glacier.

Juneau's hustle and bustle part of its charm
I like living in Juneau. I like to be able to walk to a coffee shop, a bakery or the bank and to buy newspapers from Anchorage, Seattle or New York that are available each day. I even prefer Juneau to more remote places like Elfin Cove, Angoon, Pelican or Tenakee. If I lived in England, I suppose I would prefer London, or if I was a Roman two millennia ago, I would like to be in Rome itself rather than to sit out under an olive tree in the countryside.

The fun and challenge of first grade
Shortly before school started, our building faced a class configuration crisis and I was moved from my comfortable nest in fourth grade to a brand new first grade class to alleviate overcrowding of "primary" classes. Even with this new class, we still have 26 first graders in each class.

Juneau spikers take on Kayhi
The Juneau-Douglas High School volleyball team just can't get a break this season. The Crimson Bears are playing great, coming off a sweep of Sitka last weekend. But the new rally scoring system and other rule changes keep the players on the move at all times. Points on every serve, the decision to allow "let serves" - serves that hit the net but carry over - to remain in play and fewer umpire calls have increased the pace of matches in Alaska this season.

Seniors suit up at home for one last time
As the Juneau-Douglas High School football team practiced on Thursday, a few Crimson Bear players couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive about tonight's game with the defending state champion Bartlett Golden Bears. This is Juneau's last home game of the regular season, and the seniors were starting to realize this might be the last time they'd get to play in front of the Crimson Bear faithful at Adair-Kennedy Memorial Park. Varsity game time is 8 p.m., with the junior varsity teams playing at 5 p.m.

A visit to Ground Zero as New York City tries to heal
I cannot remember the South Tower falling. I remember standing in a small alley with cobbles instead of pavement and blank windows on either side, sweating in the sun and watching the World Trade Center burn. I remember a woman's voice on the radio saying, "Oh my God" over and over again, and another voice in the background, screaming. I even remember the trail of black smoke as the very top of the tower fell in upon itself. But I cannot remember the tower falling.

Natural Gas Authority head urges investment
The head of the state's new natural gas authority made an impassioned pitch to state lawmakers for $2.5 million to help bring North Slope natural gas to market through liquefied natural gas sales. Harold Heinze's request got a chilly reception from a top state revenue official, who called the money proposal premature.